Kids and Decorating

Even as I've been thinking about painting instead of Christmas decorating, the kids have been decorating for me. Here's the tree in John's room - all decked out from top to bottom: a playmobil angel (albeit on its side) at the top and handmade decorations throughout. They're pretty sweet... the kids and their decorations.

A house project in late November... are we crazy?!?!

Yes. I think the answer is yes. But as with every other answer in the affirmative, there are reasons and justifications. You see our dryer is on the blink and this family of five really, really needs to have a working dryer. It's not like we didn't know this day was coming; three years ago when the dryer first began squealing like a pig when it started we got it fixed - to the tune of about $300. In other words, with the money spent repairing it we could have just bought a new one. We vowed not to make that mistake again - so for the last three years I've been researching washers and dryers, top loader vs. front loader, etc... so when the squealing started again we'd be ready.

That day came a few weeks ago and the brand new frontloader Maytag Epic will be delivered on Friday. But now we have to get the laundry room ready. There's my excuse for doing a house project in late November when I should be writing Christmas cards instead of painting. After lots of scraping and vacuuming (that's Dave going crazy with the vacuum) and 3 gallons of dry-lock waterproofing paint, I'm ready for the final coat - something called Vanillum - and then I'll paint the floor. It should be all dry and ready for Friday and the new washer and dryer.

Our laundry hamper will certainly be ready for help by then too.

Snow Tasting

Some people have wine tasting, some have chocolate, and others have tastings for wedding cake, but here on Belmont Road we taste the snow. P.S. There really were a few flakes (besides Dave and the kids) hanging out throughout the day today.

Christmas Quilt

When Mom figured out I was serious about quilting she suggested I try a rag quilt - she said they're pretty easy to do and you don't have to be so precise on your measurements. She's done quite a few of them and I love the look - the rag gives it such a well-loved, comfortable feel. Mom even had a pattern in mind, Oh Christmas Tree, that she wanted to try. So I found the pattern on the internet and ordered two of them from Saginaw Street Quilts. They came promptly and there the pattern sat, and sat, and sat... until two Tuesdays ago when I got started. And here's how far I am so far - stacks and stacks of 9" and 7 1/2" flannel squares interspersed with 5 1/2" squares of batting. It's been a whole lot of cutting and not any sewing up to this point. But the good news is... only 70 more batting squares to cut and then I can start sewing. Maybe the sewing machine will be whirring on Friday; but then again, the laundry room paint job is calling my name...

A new game for the season: Guess the Pie Dough Shape

...a game not all that different from the "Lay on your back in the grass, look to the blue sky and name the cloud shapes." This game is even better though because after you've named the shape on the pie dough you get to lather the dough in butter, sprinkle it with sugar and cinnamon, put it in the oven for a few minutes and after it cools, gobble it up. It's an awesome treat while you're waiting for the pumpkin pie to bake. While you're at it you could pick up the book, It Looked Like Spilt Milk, and read it to your kids.

By the way, we determined that this shape looks like the USA. What do you think?

Babies in the House

I awoke this morning to the sound of a cooing baby. No, it wasn't a dream; nor was it some kind of goofy premonition. It was actually the sound of two Chou Chou baby dolls that Grandma Bev gave to Sophie and Lucy years ago - it's just that Dave finally put the batteries back into them. When we got them John was just a few months old and the girls wanted (and badly needed) their own baby dolls to play with. The batteries went in initially but were soon disconnected. At that time one cooing, crying, hungry and softly breathing baby was enough in our chaotic household. But now that they're back, I kind of miss the sounds of a baby in the house. With that said, I just want to point out that nobody should be getting any ideas - it's not going to happen around here.